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Cheap Gene Sequencer

June 23, 2008

If
genome
sequencing gets
cheap enough, it could usher in the age of personalized medicine, in which
treatments and preventive measures are tailored to an individual’s genetic
makeup. A step in that direction is the Polonator, a new sequencer that will
cost roughly a third to a ninth as much as existing technologies. Developed by
genomics pioneer George Church, the Polonator tags DNA bases with fluorescent
markers and uses a fluorescence microscope to read off the sequences. Coming to
market later this year, the Polonator will initially be used for genomic
research.

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